Lever actuated slidable jaw wrench



May 19, 1953 B. E; ARNOLD 2,633,808

LEVER ACTUATED SLIDABLE JAW WRENCH Filed Dec. 15, 1951 INVENTOR Patented May 19, 1953 OFFICE LEVER ACTUATED SLIDABLE HAW WRENCH Ben E. Arnold, Port'olchai'djwash.

Application December 13, 1951, Serial No. 261,403

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to a tool, and more particularly to a manually operable, adjustable wrench for handling nuts, pipes, or other objects.

The object of the invention is to provide an adjustable wrench which includes jaws that are adapted to be locked onto a nut, pipe or other object, whereby upon application of pressure to the wrench handle, the object can be rotated or moved.

Another object of the invention is to provide an adjustable wrench which includes jaws-that can be adjusted to engage a nut or the like, so that the wrench can be readily and quickly adjusted to fit various sizes of objects, the wrench being readily locked and unlocked by simple manual movement.

A further object of the invention is to provide an adjustable wrench which is extremely simple and inexpensive to manufacture.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent during the course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this application, and in which like numerals are used to designate like parts throughout the same;

Figure 1 is a side elevational View of the wrench of the present invention, showing a nut positioned between the jaws;

Figure 2 is a topplan view of the. assembly shown in Figure 1; portions being shown in crosssection;

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2.

Referring in detail to the drawings, the numeral I0 designates a first jaw which can be made of any suitable material, such as a suitable metal, and the jaw It includes a work-engaging portion II and a portion l2, the portions II and I2 being arranged at right angles with respect to each other so that the jaw It as a whole has a substantial L-shape. A second jaw M to provided whichincludes a work-engaging portion l5, and extending at right angles thereto is a pair of spaced, parallel guide plates I6 and H. The guide plates I6 and I! are spaced apart so that they slidably straddle the portion ll of the jaw Ill. The plates IE and I! are provided with elongated, longitudinally extending slot H3, Figure 3. A pine 23 extends through the registering slot 18, and also through the section I! of the jaw II] for a purpose to be later described.

The adjustable wrench of the present invention further includes an elongated handle 2! which may be made of any suitable material, the handle 2| being provided with a bifurcated end M1 22 through which projects the portion l2 of the jaw I0 and between which the jaw I4 is pivoted by pin 23. The handle 2! is also provided with an inclined face 24 for a purpose to be later described.

In Figures 1 and 2 there are shown two objects which may be plates, and the objects are indicated by the numerals 25 and 2B. A bolt 21 may extend through registering openings in the members 25 and 28, and a nut 28 may be arranged in threaded engagement with the bolt 27!. Thus, the adjustable wrench of the present invention may be used for removing the nut 28 from the bolt 21, or it can be used for placing the nut 28 on the bolt 21, so that the pieces 25 and 26 can either be separated or locked together.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that an adjustable wrench has been provided which operates on a wedge-locking principle. The wrench is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, and is easy to adjust, requiring only a simple movement of the finger. Also, the wrench can be adjusted to accommodate various sizes, since the span of the jaws can be regulated or adjusted. Also, no screws or nuts need to be turned in order to adjust the wrench. To adjust the wrench jaws, the jaw I0 is manually moved so that it engages the opposite side of the nut 28 from that of the jaw Hi. This movement is permitted due to the sliding of the rivet or pin 2!] in the slot I18. Also, at the same time, the portion l2 of the jaw I0 will move upwardly through. the bifurcated end of the handle 26 until the nut 23 is engaged by both jaws. Then, a slight downward movement is exerted on the handle 2! so that the inclined face 2 5 of the handle 2| engages the portion I2 of the jaw Ill. This efiects the wedging action between the inclined face 24 and the portion I2 of the jaw I 0. Also, the slight movement forward of the section I2 of the jaw Ill effects a wedging action between the section I2 and the rear faces of the jaw I5. In other words, the end of the portion I2 is tightly gripped or pinched between the jaw I5 and the face 24 by the downward movement of the handle. Then, to rotate an object, such as. the nut 28, the user merely continues to apply pressure on the handle 2| in the same direction that was used to lock the wrench. When it is desired to unlock the wrench, the user merely applies a reverse application of the pressure to the handle 2i so that the wrench will be unlocked.

What is claimed is:

In a wrench of the character described comprising an L-shaped fixed jaw, a second L- References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Wirtz et a1 June 3, 1890 Number Number 10 Number Name Date Pipshik Aug. 21, 1917 Carmichael May '7, 1918 Wright May 6, 1919 Wright July 1, 1924 Salvucci Feb. 8, 1927 Emanuel July 19, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date France Mar. 11, 1922 

